BAM Racing, Microsoft deal showcasing small business

OK, let's see, we have Big Brew (Coors, Budweiser, Miller) in NASCAR, Big Cola (Coke, Pepsi, about 100 energy drinks and the like) ... yep, it's time to add Big Tech.

According to a blog posting on the company Web site from Eric Ligman, Microsoft U.S. senior manager of small business community engagement, Microsoft is heading to NASCAR with BAM Racing, and it's happening this weekend. That's BIG Tech.

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"Microsoft, through the Microsoft U.S. Small Business Team, has just become one of the sponsors of the No. 49 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series team for the 2008 season," Ligman wrote. "This sponsorship provides a connection to approximately 75 million NASCAR fans here in the U.S. The Microsoft sponsorship will feature the Microsoft Small Business name as well as the Microsoft Small Business Specialist (SBSC) 'blue badge,' which designates those Microsoft Partners who specialize on servicing the needs of small businesses."

Cool, right? Another company seeing the benefit of NASCAR's voluminous reach and sledgehammer demographics, big deal. Well, this is Microsoft we're talking here, and that's big news in and of itself, especially for a single-car team like BAM Racing and driver Ken Schrader.

However cool the Microsoft deal is, and it is cool, it's the BAM part of the sponsorship agreement that is killer.

"This sponsorship, which showcases Microsoft Small Business as well as our Microsoft Small Business Specialist Partners, will hopefully not only raise more awareness of the professional solutions, services and assistance available to small businesses everywhere from Microsoft and its partners, but it will also provide an opportunity for our Microsoft Small Business Specialist Partners to tap into a marketing venue not seen as financially available to many before," Ligman wrote in the blog.

The Microsoft Small Business name and Small Business Specialist blue badge will appear on the No. 49 BAM Racing car for the remainder of the season. In return, team owners Tony and Beth Ann Morganthau have offered, according to the blog:

• A custom promo race video that can be used online or on TV for marketing purposes

• A custom sponsor promo-pack which includes a custom sponsorship icon, official sponsorship certificate and royalty-free image license

• A custom race Web site with the SBSC company's logo or name

• A custom VIP race weekend sweepstakes program designed to get the SBSC partner's customers coming back over and over to their custom race Web site

• Plus, a custom race weekly newsletter available to be automatically sent to all e-mail registrants from their Web site

• Custom "On Hold" messages for the SBSC company's phone system announcing that the company is a proud sponsor of BAM Racing

• Two general admission tickets to the race of their choice* (subject to availability)

• Possible free primary sponsorship -- one business will be chosen to receive a free primary race sponsorship, a $300,000 value, according to the team

• A custom press release for the Microsoft SBSC partner to use highlighting the new sponsorship

• An exclusive one-time promotional price of $3,995, which includes all of the above for the remainder of the 2008 season; this is a one-time fee only and it gets all of the items above, including a logo on the car in the Microsoft section for the remainder of the season

As promotional plans go, this is a monster. For $4,000 per SBSC partner, the team basically builds in a marketing program with a VIP program on the other end. This weekend at Martinsville, the entire car will be done up in Microsoft colors, with the emphasis on the Small Business Specialist Community.

"We think this is a very exciting opportunity to work with all of our Microsoft Small Business Specialist Partners and BAM Racing to really drive some awareness and excitement around SBSC and Microsoft Small Business," Ligman wrote.

Think about that as a business model. Say there are 10,000 Microsoft Small Business Specialists, and each takes the opportunity to buy into the program. That adds up to $40 million. You could run a nice, tiddly little racing team for $40 million, maybe even more than one.

That's good news for the Morganthaus, who have been solid supporters of the sport for several years and embarked upon this kind of ambitious sponsorship program in an effort to keep up with bigger teams.

There might be as much to talk about regarding the sponsorship program from BAM's side as Microsoft's. This weekend at Martinsville, it will be fun to find out more.